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Day 1: Powell's solo fight

Haydn Gill

There were many moments of absolute brilliance at Kensington Oval yesterday.

Barbados' fielders took three breathtaking catches. Corey Collymore turned in another inspired spell of high-class fast bowling. But the most exhilarating entertainment was provided by one of Jamaica's most inexperienced batsmen who hit an enterprising hundred.

Ricardo Powell, aged 20 and playing only his fifth first-class match, engineered a Jamaica recovery for the second time in two weeks by attacking the bowling in the same manner he did in his match-saving 80 in the final preliminary round match at the same venue.

When he walked on to the ground 45 minutes into the opening day of the second semifinal, Jamaica were in dire straits on 25 for three after Roland Holder asked them to bat.

The position became even more uncomfortable within half-hour when captain Jimmy Adams, Powell's partner two weeks ago, was back in the Garfield Sobers Pavilion.

Powell, a tall right-hander from the central Jamaican parish of Manchester, responded mainly with meaty drives and pulls en route to his maiden first-class century.

Even when Collymore, who finished with four for 60 from 16 overs, regained the advantage for Barbados with a couple of mid-innings wickets after lunch, the 1998 Nortel MVP continued to play positively and was unbeaten on 114 when there was no one left to bat with him.

His innings was made off only 118 balls, included 17 fours and three sixes, and was more than half of Jamaica's 206, a total they could feel relatively satisfied with considering their dire position early on.

By the close, the home team had made an encouraging reply, reaching 88 for the cheap loss of Philo Wallace. His careless drive off Dwight Mais in the first over of the innings found the outside edge and went to wicket-keeper Matthew Sinclair, who completed a juggling catch.

For the next 2 1/4 hours Sherwin Campbell, with a couple of authentic off-side boundaries in 43, and the less convincing Adrian Griffith, unbeaten on 27, built up a base that should carry Barbados to first innings lead and a spot in next month's final against Trinidad and Tobago.

Barbados might have been expecting a much more superior position after stunning catches by Sherwin Campbell and Floyd Reifer accounted for two of the first four wickets.

Leon Garrick and Wavel Hinds, both highly-touted but struggling badly of late, were gone in the first two overs, the former edging Pedro Collins to the 'keeper and the latter lbw on the back foot to Collymore.

Left-hander Chris Gayle, on his return to the team after a medical problem that sidelined him for two matches, played solidly for three-quarters of an hour before Campbell, at third slip, flung himself to his left to haul in a one-handed catch inches of the ground.

Reifer's effort at the identical position was less spectacular but no less outstanding.

Adams, squared up by Collins in the first over of a new spell, edged a ball that was rapidly falling to the turf before Reifer's sure hands intercepted it.

Jamaica, then 42 for four, fought back principally on the shoulders of Ricardo Powell who dominated a fifth-wicket stand of 78 with his unrelated namesake, Tony, whose contribution was 15.

The elder Powell fell, apparently trying a pull that resulted in a catch to point off Collymore, who immediately produced an unplayable outswinger that Nehemiah Perry touched to the 'keeper.

That was a regulation catch by Courtney Browne but his next one was simply brilliant, the tall wicket-keeper stretching to pull in a ball that appeared headed for the turf. The catch, his 27th victim for the season, accounted for Matthew Sinclair.

It was one of three wickets for returning seamer Hendy Bryan, who nevertheless bowled disappointingly for the most part.

Bryan, like Collins and Collymore, struck in his first over when he removed Gayle, but he was hammered by Powell. His 11 overs cost 74 runs, 63 of them coming from his last eight overs when he switched ends.

After a relatively quiet start, Powell drove him through extra-cover and pulled a ball that was a trifle short over the Kensington Stand for the first of his three sixes.

When Ryan Hinds came on to trundle his left-arm spin, he was hoisted onto the sightscreen, a shot which carried Powell to his 50 off 44 balls.

Those strokes typified the confidence of a man who was always prepared to attack, especially against the faster stuff – indeed, 86 of his runs came off the fast bowlers.

Day 2: Jamaica still game

Philip Spooner

For two wonderful hours, Barbados' batsmen dominated Jamaica's bowlers.

Then after the coast was clear, strange tactics in the afternoon allowed Jamaica to crawl back into the Busta Cup semifinal at Kensington Oval yesterday.

After gaining first innings lead with just three wickets down 20 minutes after lunch, Barbados' middle and lower order then went into a shell as Jamaica's spinners, marshalled by captain Jimmy Adams, took control of the latter stages of the innings.

Starting the second day on 88 for one, needing to surpass 206 for the lead, the home side managed 269. Jamaica then consolidated their early work, reaching 30 for one, still 33 in arrears, but in with a chance.

The one wicket to fall was that of Leon Garrick, who nicked the fourth ball of the innings from Pedro Collins into the waiting gloves of 'keeper Courtney Browne.

Garrick, obviously susceptible to the away-moving delivery, must rate Kensington as his least favourite ground, as for the fourth time in four innings he fell in the first over.

Back in 1997, he succumbed for two ducks to Ottis Gibson, both times caught by Browne. On Friday, he fell - caught by Browne off Collins, also without scoring. Yesterday, he was caught again by Browne. At least this time he scored two.

For the next 72 minutes, left-hander Wavell Hinds and Chris Gayle, both recent West Indies ``A'' team players, steadied the ship so that even though Jamaica lost the first innings battle they remained in the war.

It was the accuracy of seasoned off-spinner Nehemiah Perry and the guile of leg-spinner Brian Murphy which limited Barbados to half of the lead they would have bargained for on a placid batting surface on a hot, sun-kissed day.

Perry, operating from the northern end, claimed five for 64 off 40.2 overs, while Murphy, showing great control from the south, snared two for 58 off 30 overs.

Perry was full of theatrics; his hop, skip and jump approach complemented by appeals to match. He kept a probing off-stump line and extracted maximum turn from a wicket which offered assistance.

The 31-year-old, in his 12th first-class season, had to wait until the 26th over for his first wicket - Floyd Reifer - caught at slip by Tony Powell for 40 from a loose drive.

Teenager Ryan Hinds, showing signs of nervousness, appeared to seize the initiative when he collected two off-side boundaries off Perry. But next over, trying to maintain the groove, Hinds spooned a catch to square-leg.

Courtney Browne was then caught behind for two on the stroke of tea; Hendy Bryan caught and bowled for six, and Winston Reid, for five, all out-foxed by bowling too clever for them.

As Perry smiled in the joy of his work and the timid batting of the Bajans, Adams turned to Murphy to tighten the screws.

After earlier dismissing Sherwin Campbell, caught low down by Powell for a topscore of 66, he returned at the end to have Pedro Collins stumped, to give 'keeper Matthew Sinclair his fifth victim.

Murphy mesmerised the tail. In one over, a vicious leg-break spun in to Reid which the left-hander played head-high. Next ball, a googly, was gloved for a single just past slip amid oohs and aahs from the estimated 3 500 spectators. The third ball, another which spun and bounced, passed Bryan's limp bat and cannoned into Sinclair's chest.

Campbell blossomed at the start of the day, spanking ten boundaries, most off speedster Dwight Mais, in passing 500 runs for the season. He added 112 for the second wicket with overnight partner Adrian Griffith, who made 47, before being Mais' second scalp.

After Griffith fell half-an-hour into the day, captain Roland Holder, a candidate for next week's opening Test against Australia, made 62 in three hours off 140 balls. He showed confidence and varied strokeplay in mastering Perry en route to passing 3 000 runs in regional cricket, but got out at a crucial stage when Barbados needed to push on. After this, the innings lost momentum and Jamaica capitalised.

Day 4: Campbell, Reifer lead the way

Philip Spooner

In the end it turned out to be quite easy.

Positive batting secured a pleasing six-wicket win for Barbados against Jamaica and a date with Trinidad and Tobago in the Busta Cup final here on March 20-23.

Half-centuries by opener Sherwin Campbell and left-hander Floyd Reifer led the homeside to the 196 they needed for victory.

Campbell, classy in style and assured in strokeplay, hit a sparkling 61 to follow up his 66 in the first innings. It was his third half-century in four innings against the Jamaicans.

Reifer struck out powerfully at anything loose and was 58 not out when the final run was achieved at 3:43 p.m.

Captain Roland Holder paid tribute to the duo after the game and said it was pleasing to reach the final.

``It's all about hard work and we played good cricket in this game,'' Holder said.

Referring to the end of the third day when Jamaica fought back, Holder said his team remained focused and always knew they would do the job.

``Throughout the season everyone played their part,'' Holder said. ``Yesterday (Sunday) it was Hendy Bryan with five wickets, and today Floyd and Sherwin batted us to a good victory.''

Campbell, who was recalled to the West Indies team for the opening Test against Australia, added 78 for the fourth wicket with Reifer. The pair came together 20 minutes after lunch when Holder was well caught close in by Leon Garrick, and immediately stamped their authority.

The diminutive Campbell, as he has done all season, played the anchor role in an innings that consisted of an 188-ball knock which spanned nearly four hours, and contained six boundaries. When he was out, caught at slip by Garrick to give leg-spinner Brian Murphy his third wicket, he was three short of the 600-run mark for the season.

Reifer, a recent tourist on the ill-fated Test tour of South Africa, was not in the West Indies team for the Trinidad Test and batted as if he knew it.

Like a man scorned, he punished anything remotely loose and hit it with brute power. His half-century came off just 80 balls in 110 minutes with seven fours.

The early damage on the Jamaicans was inflicted by Philo Wallace, who latched onto anything loose during his 26 with four fours. Two classic extra-cover drives suggested total control, but in attempting to cut Murphy's first delivery, he edged a catch to keeper Matthew Sinclair.

By then Barbados had reached 45 - off 12 overs in an hour - and Jamaica was relegated to one slip, a third man, cover on the boundary and a deep mid-off.

The mood was set, but Adrian Griffith never got into stride as Murphy used the googly wisely to put great doubt in the left-hander's mind.

Griffith, unsure against spin all season, spent 45 minutes in making just seven and was eventually flummoxed when he was bowled trying to drive a teasing leg-break. After lunch the innings gathered momentum, especially when Reifer and Campbell feasted on a diet of spin.

After Campbell, Ryan Hinds came and together with Reifer saw the innings through, but not before some comic relief was provided when speedster Dwight Mais sent down a 12-ball over.

Coming on half-an-hour after tea in the first over of pace since 11 a.m, every time he overstepped the spectators square-on in the Kensington Stand shouted a loud ``no-ball''. Umpire Dalton Holder obliged by signalling all.

Then Leon Garrick bowled an over of the slowest off-spin possible from which Hinds could not score. Then as ashes descended on the Oval from a cane fire in the distance it was ``ashes to ashes and dust to dust'' for Jamaica as Ricardo Powell misfielded Reifer's push into the onside.